Michigan roads proposal: Opponents knock 'special interest' add-ons in first TV ad of campaign
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on February 16, 2015 at 9:05 AM, updated February 16, 2015 at 9:51 AM
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MICHIGAN ROADS
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LANSING, MI -- Michigan's May 5 ballot proposal includes special interest add-ons that will fund far more than road repairs, opponents argue in the first television ad of the Proposal 1 campaign.
Paul Mitchell, a Saginaw-area businessman and chair of "The Coalition Against Higher Taxes and Special Interest Deals," on Monday announced a six-figure buy for ads that will air on broadcast TV, cable, radio and online.
The first ad, a humorous 30-second television spot set to run Tuesday during the Michigan-Michigan State basketball game, features a shopper reviewing her receipt at a checkout line.
A clerk explains that Proposal 1 would hike the state sales tax. As they're talking, a man in a suit -- ostensibly a lobbyist -- climbs into the woman's cart.
"That's a special interest," the clerk says. "...Lansing politicians say the tax is for roads, but nearly 40 percent of it goes to special interests."
Proposal 1, which would raise the state sales tax from 6 percent to 7 percent, was sent to the ballot on the final day of last year's lame-duck legislative session following a bipartisan agreement between Gov. Rick Snyder and legislative leaders.
The constitutional amendment, along with companion laws it would trigger, is projected to generate around $1.9 billion a year once fully implemented in 2018, according to the latest analysis by the non-partisan House Fiscal Agency.
Of that, about $1.3 billion would fund road and bridge repairs. Another $200 million would go to schools, $116 million to mass transit, $111 million to local revenue sharing and $173 million to the state's general fund. Revenues would be higher in year one -- topping $2 billion total -- before expansion of the Earned Income Tax credit kicks in.
"The roads are being held hostage," Mitchell said in a Monday morning interview. "We don't argue that the roads don't need to be fixed. We do argue that we shouldn't have to pay over $700 million to various other interests so we have the right to fix our roads. That's what we're doing."
Mitchell, who spent nearly $5 million of his own money running for Congress last year but lost in the 5th District Republican primary, is providing initial funding for the campaign but expects other donors to participate moving forward.
"We've only got 75 days or so to the vote, so our objective is to get the message out to voters early about what the other side doesn't want to talk about, which is all of the other things that were thrown in this package," he said.
Mitchell's group is one of four ballot committees that have formed to fight Proposal 1, and the early ad buy suggests his will be the most aggressive of the bunch.
The "Safer Roads Yes" coalition is supporting the proposal, meanwhile, and Snyder is expected to campaign for its passage. The group announced last week that nearly 50 member organizations have signed on to the effort, including the Michigan Sheriffs' Association and the Small Business Association of Michigan.
Roger Martin, a spokesperson for the "yes" campaign, had not seen the new TV ad but said he thinks Michigan voters will "find it insulting to suggest that the agencies responsible for making our roads safe, for keeping our drinking water safe and clean and for getting our children to school safely are special interests."
Beyond the ad itself, Martin challenged opponents to come up with a better solution for fixing crumbling roads.
"If they have faith that this Legislature will come up with something better than Proposal 1, they're not paying attention," he said. "Proposal 1 is an imperfect solution, but it is a solution that will make our roads and bridges safe once again."
Supporters are also expected to run an aggressive media campaign for Proposal 1. Ballot committees are scheduled to file campaign finance reports later this week, providing an early look at initial fundraising numbers and potential spending power.
Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.